Two days later, Jiraiya arrived at Konoha while carrying Uzumaki Rin.
This time, Uzumaki Rin wasn't asleep. His bright eyes were wide open as he curiously looked around without blinking.
Back when he watched anime in his previous life, he had been very familiar with the image of Konoha. But now, seeing it with his own eyes, he realized that no matter how vivid the animation was, it couldn't compare to the real thing.
"Lord Jiraiya, you've returned."
The two shinobi guarding the village gate immediately bowed respectfully when they saw Jiraiya.
"Mm. No need to report it. I'll go speak to the Third myself later," Jiraiya replied with a nod before walking straight in.
At this moment, Uzumaki Rin was still thinking that he would soon meet the Third Hokage. He even wondered whether he might get to see Tsunade and Orochimaru. He didn't notice at all that Jiraiya wasn't heading toward the Hokage Tower.
Very quickly, Jiraiya brought Uzumaki Rin to a residential area. Most of the people living there were civilians—one look at their clothing made that clear.
Uzumaki Rin was puzzled. Could it be that Jiraiya lived here? Surely one of the Legendary Sannin wasn't doing so poorly that he didn't even have his own residence?
"Lord Jiraiya."
As Jiraiya entered a courtyard, a man missing an arm and a woman hurried out. The moment they saw him, they dropped to one knee respectfully.
"This child is someone I rescued from the Land of Rain. Shinji was injured before, so I'll leave this child in your care," Jiraiya said as he handed Uzumaki Rin to the woman.
"Yes, Lord Jiraiya. We will treat him as our own son," the woman replied immediately and respectfully.
"Mm. I trust you," Jiraiya nodded. After glancing once more at Uzumaki Rin, he turned to leave.
At that moment, Uzumaki Rin was completely dumbfounded.
What the hell is this? You're just handing me over to two civilians? Is my future supposed to be ruined like this?
Even though the Naruto world values strength above all, background still matters!
If Jiraiya raised him, his status would be completely different from that of a civilian child. The resources he would receive growing up would also be on a whole other level.
If he stayed with Jiraiya, the people he would come into contact with would be the Third Hokage, Tsunade, Orochimaru, Sakumo Hatake, Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, and other major figures of the story. The kind of help he could get from them would be absolutely insane.
But if he became a civilian's child, who would he meet? A bunch of random kids and background shinobi. The difference between the two was like heaven and earth.
No. I can't let this happen. Even if I have to act cute today, I have to make Jiraiya take me with him.
"Kid, behave yourself and stay with them. Be obedient. I'm leaving," Jiraiya said, waving at Uzumaki Rin.
At that moment, Uzumaki Rin's lips trembled, and tears instantly welled up in his eyes. His eyes turned red as he looked at Jiraiya with a pitiful expression—so miserable that anyone who saw it would feel heartbroken.
Jiraiya hesitated for a moment when he saw that expression, but after thinking about his own situation, he hardened his resolve. He simply couldn't take care of a child.
So he turned his head and left.
The moment Uzumaki Rin saw Jiraiya vanish using the Body Flicker Technique, he immediately began wailing.
He cried with such intensity that it was utterly heartbreaking—anyone who heard it would feel sorrow, anyone who saw it would be moved to tears. No matter how the couple tried to comfort him, nothing worked.
Outside the courtyard, Jiraiya heard Uzumaki Rin's cries, and his heart seemed to tighten. Although he felt reluctant, he knew he couldn't raise a child. After listening for a while, he gritted his teeth and left once again.
Meanwhile, Uzumaki Rin continued crying.
Only now did he realize that for a baby, crying was actually an exhausting task.
But even after crying for more than ten minutes, Jiraiya still hadn't returned. Uzumaki Rin felt extremely frustrated.
Still, he had no choice but to keep crying. If he stopped now, everything would be set in stone—and that would be the end of him.
Even if Jiraiya really left, the Third Hokage might be watching this through the crystal ball. Once Jiraiya reached the Hokage, he would see Uzumaki Rin crying.
And even if the Third wasn't watching, it didn't matter. Uzumaki Rin would just keep crying. At worst, he'd go on a hunger strike and continue crying. Even if his throat got damaged, it didn't matter—Tsunade could fix it easily.
In short, as long as he could stay with Jiraiya, nothing else mattered.
A few minutes later, Jiraiya appeared in the Third Hokage's office.
At this time, Hiruzen Sarutobi was not old yet. He was in his prime, known as the "Professor," full of authority and power. There was none of the later frailty—right now, he truly embodied what a Hokage should be.
"Old man, I'm back. How is Tsunade doing?" Jiraiya asked urgently as soon as he entered.
"The death of Nawaki hit her hard. You should go see her later," Hiruzen said in a heavy tone.
"Then I'm heading out," Jiraiya said immediately after hearing that, turning to leave.
"Wait. Aren't you going to explain about the child you brought back?" Hiruzen stopped him.
"I rescued him on the way back to Konoha. He should be from the Uzumaki clan," Jiraiya replied.
"I could tell from his hair color. Otherwise, I might have thought he was your son. Ever since you handed him over, he's been crying non-stop. He hasn't stopped yet," Hiruzen said with a smile.
"…" Jiraiya paused, then glanced at the crystal ball.
At that moment, the image inside the crystal ball showed Uzumaki Rin crying loudly, while the couple tried helplessly to comfort him.
"I'll be going," Jiraiya said after a brief silence.
After Jiraiya left, Hiruzen smiled mysteriously and continued watching the crystal ball.
Soon, Jiraiya appeared in the scene displayed within it.
"Um… this child is actually quite important to the village. I think it's better if I take him back and raise him myself. I'll find another child for you another day. That's it," Jiraiya said awkwardly as he reappeared before the couple.
"Yes, Lord Jiraiya," the couple replied, visibly relieved, as they quickly handed Uzumaki Rin back to him.
The moment Uzumaki Rin returned to Jiraiya's arms, he immediately stopped crying. His big eyes stared at Jiraiya, and he broke into a bright smile.
Finally, you're back. If I kept crying any longer, I'd have died from exhaustion.
At this moment, Uzumaki Rin was genuinely happy—he didn't have to cry anymore.
Jiraiya looked at Uzumaki Rin, whose face was now full of smiles again, and shook his head helplessly before disappearing with another Body Flicker.
[ New Book Please Send Power Stones And Add To Collection]